My neighbor John was diagnosed with lung cancer about six months ago. No, he never smoked, and he hasn’t been exposed to anything associated with sources that generally are considered to cause cancer. He did have a mark on one lung for many years, but it did nothing, never changed or moved, and it wasn’t cancer until suddenly it was. At his last doctor’s appointment, the mark looked worse, and the biopsy revealed it was stage 3 lung cancer. They removed the infected part of the lung via laparoscopic surgery, and he started on his regimen of chemotherapy. So far, he’s lost very little hair. To look at him, you’d never know he had lung cancer. What an ordeal!

What causes lung cancer? Smoking cigarettes and other substances are the top risk factors. They can actually cause “cancer of the mouth and throat, esophagus, stomach, colon, rectum, liver, pancreas, voice box (larynx), lung, trachea, bronchus, kidney and renal pelvis, urinary bladder, cervix, and acute myeloid leukemia” according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website. Indoor Radon, asbestos, arsenic, diesel exhaust, and some forms of silica and chromium are other substances the CDC list as possible cancer-causing substances.

The CDC defines lung cancer as “a disease in which the cells in the lungs grow out of control.”  Small Cell and Non-Small cancer describe the two varieties of lung cancer. Generally, symptoms will not appear until the cancer is advanced as we saw in the manner of my friend John. Some people just don’t feel well, or they could experience a constant bad cough, chest pain, wheezing, coughing up blood, and/or feeling tired all the time.

If a problem appears, the most common testing for the disease will be a low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) scan which reveals detailed images of many parts of the body including muscles, bones, fat, blood vessels, and organs. Three risks with the screening include: a false positive test which indicates cancer is present when there actually is none, a screening which finds cases of cancer which never caused a problem (labeled as overdiagnosis) therefore leading to treatments that are not necessary, and cancer caused because of the repeated LDCT scans.

As is true with almost all cancers, early detection will help lead to successful treatment. Patients become candidates for the screening and testing after one hopefully finds a lung cancer specialist and could also seek a second opinion since receiving a true diagnosis can be complicated. But everyone needs to be  aware of the subtle signs listed above because cancer can be a silent killer.

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The Future of Connection for Women